Table of Contents
Highlights
- App development briefs should focus on context and goals, not just features.
- Strong app briefs share business stage, KPIs, monetization, and audience.
- App briefs must be backed by real data and user behavior, not opinions.
- App briefs should define the problem clearly before any development starts.
- App briefs work best as short, sharp documents that teams refine together.
Most apps do not flame out because the code is trash. They fail because the brief had no real context. A feature list is not a brief. The gap between those two is what decides if your project ships, stalls, or burns money.
Pixelfield, an app development agency in London that has reviewed and rewritten thousands of briefs, puts it bluntly: if you skip the why, everything else is guesswork.
TLDR
- A good brief is about context, not features.
- Include goals, KPIs, funding stage, monetization plan, and audience.
- Two clear sentences beat a twenty page wall of text.
- Kill assumptions. Bring real data.
- For live products, share user behavior, not opinions.
Start Small – The Minimum Viable Brief
You can kick this off in two lines. Example:
“We run a pizza brand and we need to deliver faster because phone orders are killing us.”
That is enough to start the conversation. You will fill the rest together. Honest and specific beats fancy formatting.
The Feature List Trap
Weak briefs love screens, buttons, and buzzwords. They ignore the why. Teams need to know KPIs and whether they are building a proof of concept, an MVP, or something built to scale. Startups that already went through funding rounds write the best briefs because they know the problem, the market, and their early adopters.
What To Include So The Team Can Actually Build
Pixelfield’s ideal brief is a short doc that covers:
- who the company is and what it does
- what the product is and why it matters
- what help is needed and what goals exist
- what success looks like
- current issues, risks, and constraints
If the product spans web and mobile, say how web development and mobile development will coordinate. If the product needs a stronger visual identity, Pixelfield’s design agency in London aligns look and feel across platforms.
When The Brief Is Messy or Thin
Perfect briefs are a myth. The job is to extract the critical parts and fill gaps. Risky assumptions get flagged fast. The process depends on how far you got on your own. Sometimes it takes two hours. Sometimes two weeks. If you bring only a feature list and no target user, run a validation stage before any development.
Data Beats Opinions
Legacy or ongoing products often fail at the brief stage because nobody tracks behavior. Bad data collection kills clarity. Teams need to see what slows users down – speed issues, onboarding friction, unclear flows. Fixes follow numbers, not vibes. The team will not start building without a defined problem and a measurable goal. If those are missing, they stop and help define them first.
Do These Three Things Before You Write Anything
- Define the problem you are solving and how you plan to solve it.
- Check what alternatives already exist.
- Fill a one page lean canvas to confirm the business is viable.
If the product already exists, add a short report with current metrics and bottlenecks to show where to improve.
One Line Of Advice
Do not vanish into fake detail. Do not make ChatGPT write your specs. One wrong assumption and the plan collapses. Sit down, think, and write a lean canvas that proves the idea makes business sense.
FAQ
How long should a solid app brief be?
A few pages. Clarity over size. Two sharp paragraphs beat twenty pages of filler.
Do I need to choose the tech stack in the brief?
No. State goals and constraints. The right stack follows from that.
What is the difference between POC, MVP, and scalable products?
POC tests a risky assumption. MVP tests value with real users. Scalable means you know what works and you are building for growth.
Can I start with just a feature list?
Only if you agree to run a validation sprint first. Without a clear audience and problem, features are guesses.
How long does it take to write a good brief?
Anywhere from two hours to two weeks, based on how prepared you are.
Reality Check
A quick pass with professionals beats a rebuild later. App work is design, data, business logic, and engineering. No one nails all of it alone. Before you pour time or cash into a half baked plan, get someone who lives this daily to challenge your assumptions.
About Pixelfield
“We design, develop and grow mobile apps and web apps, games, applications for virtual and augmented reality, and other digital products. We love our job, and users love our products. You can find us in London, New York, and Prague.”
